WITCH The two swords
by yellow 14
Summary: The girls find themselves drawn into a new conflict, one that has raged for centuries. Can W.I.T.C.H destroy Soul Edge and is it really their responsibility?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own W.I.T.C.H or Soul Calibur.

AN: Comicverse set just after Jewel the water shadow incident.

Talim looked up at the building in front of her. She felt nervous at the thought of starting a new school, but she was used to it by now. Her quarry was in this town, she could feel it. This time, the cursed sword would be destroyed, hopefully for good.

Will was less than happy. It really hurt when Matt had failed to acknowledge her. Admittedly she had torn into him pretty badly when she thought Mandy and him were a couple, but the fact that she was wrong didn't help her feel any better. If anything, it made her feel worse. At least she still had her friends. And she wasn't the only one who had experienced heartbreak either. Cornelia had broken up with the boy of her dreams, in her case literally.

The new computer science teacher, Raphael watched as pupils walked into the school. He was so close, he could almost feel it. The sword was almost his and with it he would save Amy.

"Good morning students. This is your principal speaking. I have an important announcement to make. For the next three weeks, we will be host to a group of foreign exchange students from Japan. I hope you will do your utmost to make them feel welcome. In the immortal words of our schools first principal, Mr Folder…" A sudden crackling noise came over the schools pa system, before it promptly exploded.

Talim smiled as she watched the schools PA system explode. Not an auspicious start for a new system. She only hoped that her own start was less problematic.

"A foreign exchange programme." Hay Lin exclaimed. "I wonder what they'll be like?"

Irma smiled and pointed towards a small, phillipino girl about their age, who was looking around at the school with a lost expression on her face.

"Probably a bit like her." She commented.

"How about we say hello?" suggested Will. "She looks like she could use a friend or two."

But before they could even say hello, Principal Knickerbocker charged out of her office and yelled.

"Gideon! You assured me that the new PA system would work perfectly!"

As Gideon tried to stutter out his apologies, she turned to face the students standing outside her office.

"And what are you students all still doing here?"

Without missing a beat and in a perfectly deadpan voice, Cornelia replied

"We're waiting to find out what Mr Folders immortal words were ma'am."

"Get to class! Those were his words!" she yelled at them.

"Um… Those words don't sound that immortal" Irma commented with a smile on her face.

"TO CLASS!" she bellowed. Laughing, the girls split up and headed to their respective classes. Talim was left standing alone as she tried to figure out where to go.

"And what are you doing here?" she asked Talim in an angry voice.

"I'm trying to find my way to class Mrs." Talim replied quietly. It was a constant source of annoyance to Talim that, despite the fact that she could face horrible monsters and deadly foes, her teachers still could scare her.

A few minutes later she walked into her history class. Sitting down in the only available seat, she pulled out her history textbook.

"Are you Miss Talim?" a voice asked. She looked up to see a tall, brown haired man with a mustache standing in front of her table. She nodded. "I am your history teacher, Mr Collins. I'll need you to take a short test to establish how much you know about what we're studying."

"OK" she murmured.

He gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry about getting everything right, just do what you can, ok." He said in a friendly manner.

After class was over, she was met by a couple of girls, an Asian girl with long, loose black hair and a shorthaired brunette.

"Don't worry about Mr Collins. His bark is worse than his bite." The Asian girl said reassuringly.

"Yeah I think he enjoys freaking out the new kids," the brunette added. "I'm Irma and this is Hay Lin. Wanna join us for lunch?"

Talim thought about it for thirty seconds. "Sure, why not?" she replied cheerfully. It was always a good idea to make friends when you started anew. Of course she couldn't tell them about her extra curricular activities of course, that would put them at terrible risk.

Irma looked at the new girl Talim. It didn't hurt to befriend someone new. Telling her about the guardians was off limits of course, but that didn't mean they had to be unfriendly.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Do I really need to say it? I DON'T OWN W.I.T.C.H OR SOUL CALIBUR.

"Will! Get back here!" Thomas Vandom yelled at his daughter as she jumped out of the car. Will merely slammed the door. Popping open his door, he raised his head above the roof of the car and yelled "Will!" once more, but Will was already racing into the storm. After slamming his fists on the roof of the car, he got back in and resumed driving.

He was so preoccupied with his annoyance at the fact that he had pushed Will too hard in his attempt to get her to favour him instead of his ex, Susan, that he almost failed to see the figure crossing the road in front of him. Hitting the brakes hard, he barely avoided knocking the figure down. Opening the door, he was determined to give whoever it was, a piece of his mind.

"Hey, why don't you loo…" Thomas Vandom's words trailed off as he saw the figure come into clear view. The green, two legged, lizard like creature looked like an escapee from the set of Jurassic park. Except Thomas Vandom was pretty sure that dinosaurs never carried weapons. Especially a well crafted one hand axe in one hand and a small shield on the other arm. Nor did they wear clothes like that headress with golden feathers across the top, strap sandals or a red and gold breastplate. The lizard creature stepped forward and roared at him. Thomas ran like a scared rabbit.

When he charged into the police station, he was soaking, but he didn't notice until he collided with the reception. But the police didn't take his report seriously and he was charged with wasting police time.

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The whole school was assembled in front of the Sheffield Institute to greet the arriving exchange students. There was an excited and curious murmur running through the crowd. Rumours about what they would be like had flown around the school faster than the speed of light.

"Quiet down children!" Principal Knickerbocker bellowed at them as the bus pulled up. A Japanese man with dark brown-black hair and a lot of stubble on his face stepped out, a slight aurora of menaces radiating from him. He turned and bowed to Principal Knickerbocker, who returned the gesture.

"Principal Knickerbocker, I am Professor Mitsurugi from the Namco High school. It is an honour to finally meet you." He said as he shook her hand. "May we disembark?"

"Of course!" Principal Knickerbocker replied with a smile on her face.

"Class disembark!" He bellowed into the open bus door. A dozen students filed neatly out of the bus, all wearing their school uniform of a white shirt and a chocolate brown skirt for the girls and a white shirt, black trousers and a black tie for the boys. Their uniformity in clothes contrasted vividly with the varied clothing of the Sheffield institute.

Taki looked at the assembled students of the Sheffield Institute and wished, not for the first time, that she was back home. The majority of the male student population seemed to be staring at her chest, which annoyed her no end. Running her fingers through her long black hair, she mentally wished to herself that she wasn't so…. Busty.

"At least back home, I generally knew the names of the guys eyeing me and could get them back." She murmured to herself. Still, Soul Edge was definitely here and she was determined to destroy it, no matter what.

Xianghua watched in amusement as the boys of the Sheffield Institute almost unilaterally turned their gaze in Taki's direction.

"It looks like Taki's getting their attention, as per normal" she whispered to her boyfriend, Kilik. Beside them, Maxi, Kilik's best friend let out a small chuckle.

"Yun-Seong on the other hand, is getting the girls attention. At least those girls not staring at you" he added. Kilik glared at him. Six-foot tall, with short, messy brown hair with brown eyes and bulging muscles, Kilik tended to stand out. Maxi saw his friends glare and ignored it. Although a little shorter than him, Maxi, Kilik and Xianghua had trained together for years, Maxi with his nunchucks, Kilik his Bo staff and Xianghua with her sword. Maxi had black hair and blue eyes and he too had an impressive set of muscles. Xianghua on the other hand was short and agile, with dark brown hair and brown eyes.

Setsuka brushed a stray hair behind her ear with irritation as she looked at the assembled students of the Sheffield institute. Shooting a glance at her best friend Taki, she smiled. The look on her friend's face resembled that of a deer caught in the headlights. Setsuka's pale skin, blond hair and blue eyes had made her something of an outcast when she had started elementary school, but Taki had befriended her and for that she was grateful. Setsuka was seeking Soul Edge as well, but in her case, it was about revenge on Professor Mitsurugi.

Hiro Yoshimitsu looked at the Sheffield institute with some trepidation. He didn't like the idea of having a fight in a place he didn't know, but he had no choice in the matter. Soul Edge was here and as long as that sword existed, he was determined to destroy it.

Yun-Seong preened his short, spiky red hair and scanned the many faces staring at them.

"There are some pretty cute girls here" he commented to his cousin, Seong Mi-Na, who was standing next to him. Seong Mi-Na rolled her eyes in annoyance.

"Sheesh, we're in a new country, we're seeking Soul Edge and all you can think about is your next five minute girlfriend." She said, mildly annoyed. Her medium length hair was tied in its oh so familiar ponytail, but her usual green and blue bandanna was absent, Professor Mitsurugi had removed it from her head on the coach.

"Hey isn't that Talim?" Yun-Seong exclaimed, pointing at Talim, who was sitting in the crowd, next to Hay Lin and Irma.

Talim let out a small groan and covered her face. Hay Lin and Irma gave quizzical looks.

"What's up?" Hay Lin asked in a puzzled voice.

Talim pointed to Yun-Seong. "You see that redheaded boy, there?" she began. Hay Lin and Irma nodded. "He's my ex-boyfriend."

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Susan Vandom looked at her new client and suppressed a shudder. The muscular, dark-skinned bald man was very handsome as a matter of fact, but his gold left eye and general aurora of menace made Susan uncomfortable.

"So Mr Zasalamel, do you think this programme will suit your purpose?" she asked him calmly.

"This will do for now." He replied calmly and left with the disk. This programme would help him know when the two swords finally met. Time was against him, but he was determined to regain his mortality, no matter what.

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As the Learjet touched down on the tarmac at Heatherfield airport, Ivy Valentine, founder of Valentine industries looked out the window at Heatherfield.

"It seems such a strange place for Soul Edge to turn up." She murmured to herself. A chemist by trade, Ivy had made a fortune in industrial chemicals. Her short white hair and icy blue eyes seemed misplaced on a woman in her mid-twenties, but Ivy Valentine refused to dye it. As far as she was concerned, dyeing her hair was a waste of time, it never stayed.

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Harry Seyer looked up at the ship that had docked earlier today. It was a mystery all right. The crew were found dead, all slashed by a pair of swords. But the ship had docked smoothly. It was only when the unloading crew went aboard that the crew was discovered. He failed to see a purple skinned man jump off onto the dock. Cervante stroked his white beard and spun his two swords. He needed to save Soul Edge, for it held the key to his very survival.

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Siegfried concentrated on the road ahead of him and wondered to himself why here of all places. His long blonde hair and blue eyes drew plenty of admiring glances, but that didn't matter to him. When he had been Nightmare, he had taken many innocent lives. Now he was free of that cursed sword, he sought to earn forgiveness.

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Nightmare looked at the city of Heatherfield and let out a growl. Little more than a suit of dark purple armour with a horned helmet and a malevolent force, Nightmare needed Soul Edge to become a living person, now that he Siegfried had abandoned him.

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In Candracar, the Oracle watched the new arrivals with concern. He knew full well that the two swords Soul Edge and Soul Calibur had arrived in Heatherfield, but he didn't like the dangers that the two swords brought with them.

AN: I'm using the cast of Soul Calibur III, but not all of them, for practical reasons. This chapters little more than an introduction to the rest of the Soul Calibur characters in this fic.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Is there anyone here stupid enough to think I own either of these franchises? No? Good

AN: At the beginning of my last chapter, I continued from a scene in the comics. I apologise if I confused anyone.

Nightmare stalked into the jeweller's shop and glared. Sitting, right there, in the middle of an engagement ring was one of the fragments of Soul Edge. Snarling, he smashed his fist into the window, causing the alarm to go off.

"Oi what do you think you're doing!?!" the storeowner yelled at him. Pulling out a shotgun, the man blasted a shot into Nightmare's head. Without it having any effect. Nightmare smashed into the shop, towards the owner, who panicked and started pumping off shots as fast as he could. It did him little good. Nightmare grabbed the man by the front of his shirt.

"GIVE ME YOUR SOUL!" he bellowed as he ripped the mans soul from his body and absorbed it.

Across the road, a concerned neighbour dialled 911 and fate started its steady turn into bringing the Guardians into a centuries old conflict.

* * *

Talim was in class when the vision hit her. History class to be exact. Unfortunately, it wasn't gentle when it hit.

A sudden burst of pain shot right through Talim's skull, causing her to shoot forward in her seat, to smack firmly into the table in front of her.

"Talim are you ok?" Mr Collins asked worriedly.

"Y-y-yes." Talim stuttered out. The vision was already starting to blur around the edges, it clearly wasn't intended for her. All that she'd seen was an image of the creature Nightmare and a sense of overwhelming hatred for all life.

"Irma Lair, please take Talim to see the school nurse." Mr Collins said authoritatively.

"I'm fine! Really!" Talim insisted. She didn't need the school nurse to examine her, she needed time to think what that vision had meant. Did it mean that Nightmare had just taken someone's soul? Or was it a warning that he was going to?

"Go now." Dean Collins told her authoritatively. Realising that further argument was futile, Talim allowed Irma to lead her out of the classroom.

* * *

Kilik, Maxi and Xianghua all felt a wave of discomfort pass over them. Unlike Talim though, they were able to hide any signs of their discomfort. But all three of them felt it. Another fragment of Soul Edge had joined its master.

* * *

Zasalamel gave a small frown as he felt Soul Edge reunite with its master. Things were moving quickly. Too quickly. He would have to step in, to make sure things didn't go off course.

* * *

Siegfried felt a bolt of pain tear through his skull as he was forced to witness Nightmare kill the shopkeeper.

"How many more must die because of my stupidity!" he cursed out loud, drawing strange glances from the people around him. Shaking off their stares, he charged towards his car, determined to find Nightmare this time.

* * *

Cervantes grinned as he felt the fragment consume the mans soul. With any luck, Soul Edge would be complete when he took it from that creature Nightmare and then, his immortality would be assured.

* * *

Detective Lair and several police officers were first to arrive on the scene. Pulling out a loudspeaker, he called over to the creature in the storefront. Looking like a huge suit of walking, dark purple armour (which he was. Nightmare hadn't had a body since his last host abandoned him.) Nightmare still exuded menace.

"This is the Heatherfield police department. Lower your weapon and come out with your hands up."

Nightmare turned and growled at them. Two nervous young officers opened fire, but their fire had no more effect on him than the shopkeeper's shotgun. Growling in annoyance once more, Nightmare sent a ball of dark energy into the collected police cars, sending them flying all over the place. The last thing Detective Lair saw before he lost consciousness was Nightmare standing over him.

* * *

Talim practically collapsed as vision after vision assaulted her. For every attack Nightmare made, another vision hit her. And the visions made her feel sick to her very core.

* * *

Siegfried ignored the bolts of pain shooting through his skull. No one had died yet, but time was running out.

* * *

Siegfried's car screeched to a halt as he spotted Nightmare. Pulling out his huge broadsword, he swiftly swung it between Nightmare and his potential victim.

"You!" Nightmare growled in surprise, glaring at Siegfried. Siegfried merely growled back. Jumping away from Siegfried (a surprisingly feat given the fact that he was weighed down with armour.) Nightmare pointed his sword at Siegfried. "We'll settle this when the time is right and not before!" he chuckled. Well, as close to a chuckle as he could get.

Siegfried cursed as Nightmare escaped once more. Hearing the sounds of police sirens in the background, Siegfried pulled off his silver gauntlets and got back into his car and accelerated away.

* * *

"Irma!" A voice called over to Irma as she walked back to her classroom.

Irma turned to face the voices owner Alchemie Jones running towards her. New to Sheffield, Alchemie and Irma were largely indifferent to one another.

"Principal Knickerbocker wants you in her office." Alchemie said as she tried to catch her breath.

"WHAT!?! But I haven't done anything wrong!" Irma protested.

"Principal Knickerbocker says it's urgent. Your mom and brother are there as well."

A sudden sense of foreboding crossed Irma's mind and her stomach threatened to empty its contents right there and then.

"Please don't let it be that my dad's been hurt." She murmured to herself as she started to run to Principal Knickerbockers office. She refused to even consider the possibility that he was dead.

* * *

Doctor Simon Farbanti was stumped. So were his colleagues. Officer Tom Lair was in some kind of coma, but not one that made any sense, medically speaking. His injuries were largely superficial. Severe burns were the worse of his injuries and they weren't superficial, but they weren't serious enough to stop his heartbeat. But his heart had stopped. Twice. It was only with quick action that they'd been able to keep him alive at all.

* * *

Irma looked in at her father, laying in the hospital bed and made a personal promise to seriously hurt whoever did this to her dad and Candracar's directives be damned. In the background, she could hear her mother talking to the doctor, but for some reason, she couldn't understand them. It wasn't like they were using strange words and phrases either, Irma's mind just shut them out.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Do I own these series? Wishful thinking.

AN: Sorry that this story took so long to update. I'll try not to leave it so long in future.

"Do you guys have any idea what's happened with Irma?" Taranee asked with a worried expression on her face as they walked out of school.

"It's nothing Guardian related, or the Heart would be playing up like crazy." Cornelia pointed out as they continued walking. "Hey what's up Hay-Hay?"

Hay Lin was walking towards them with her eyes looking downwards and an air of sadness seemed to hang over her. This was not helped by the wild winds buffeting them, sending autumn leaves all over the place.

"Hay Lin? You ok?" Will asked, concern in her voice.

"Huh?" Hay Lin said, coming out of her fugue. She shook her head slightly to clear her head. "I'm fine. It's Irma. Her dad's been hurt." The others looked at her. "I listened in to what Principal Knickerbocker was saying to her." When she noticed the other girl's incredulous expressions she raised her hands. "I was worried about her!"

"Isn't Principal Knickerbockers office on the other side of the building?" Taranee asked in shock.

"It is, isn't it?" Cornelia added. "How on Earth did you hear that?"

"Well…really good hearing… Haven't really thought about it." Hay Lin started. The others looked at her.

"Ok, I used my powers! Happy?"

"Just how far CAN you hear?" Taranee asked incredulously. Hay Lin shrugged.

"Don't know, I've never tested it."

"We should go to her place and see if she's ok." Will cut in. An image of her mom in a hospital bed crossed her mind. "I think she could really use a friend about now."

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Raphael watched as the students filed out of the Sheffield institute with an expression of contempt. These people, this job, this very town, were beneath him. But, he thought as he strapped on his rapier, he was here for something far too important to allow such things to bother him. When he got his hands on Soul Edge, the world WOULD know. And his daughter Amy would have a place to fit in once more.

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Talim rushed into her flat and quickly strapped on a pair of gauntlets, decorated by a pattern of blue and gold. Quickly changing into her priestess clothes, a pair of light blue trousers, a midriff-baring sleeveless jacket and blue sandals. As she stepped out of the door, she shivered. It was a shame, Talim thought to herself, that her priestess outfit was designed for the warm weather of the Philippines and not the chillier weather of Heatherfield in the autumn.

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Kilik, Maxi and Xianghua grabbed their weapons as soon as they got to the motel they were staying at.

"You felt it too then?" Kilik asked in a no-nonsense tone. Xianghua nodded and Maxi groaned.

"And I was hoping it was just me being paranoid." He moaned as he started lazily swinging his nunchucks about.

"Hey, at least it means we're on the right track." Xianghua pointed out cheerfully as she stood on one foot and pointed her sword towards the ground. "That's got to be a good thing, right?"

"We knew it would come here anyway, so it's not like we didn't know." Maxi pointed nonchalantly. "C'mon, I want to find this damn sword, so we can destroy it and get away from this damn place.

"Let's go. We need to get this over and done with as quickly as possible." Kilik said firmly, a frown on his face. "Before anyone else dies. Or worse."

Maxi slicked his hair back. "Don't worry, Kilik my man. I'm too cool to fail." Xianghua gently bopped him and grinned.

"You really need to pop your ego, prat!" she said as she tied up her black hair. Kilik smiled slightly and walked out.

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Yoshimitsu pulled on his garish golden mask and over-decorated coat of gold and blue. As he strapped his sword to his hip, he jumped out of the window and landed silently on the ground below. With a quick look round, he ran into the night.

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Seong Mi-Na sighed as she watched her cousin dash off into the night, his curved sword strapped to his waist.

"Honestly Yun-Seong. Did you really think I wouldn't notice?" She sighed exasperatedly. Picking up her naginata, she slipped out of the motel and set off after her errant cousin.

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The green-skinned Lizardman sniffed the air with hope. It was close, the air was practically shimmering in his nostrils.

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Zasalamel looked around at the Ludmoore clock tower. This would do perfectly. Now it was time to get his attention.

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Taki liked being on the top floor of the motel they were staying at. Most people would find it an annoyance when sneaking out, but for Taki, it wasn't a problem.

"You're going out, aren't you?" Setsuka asked, catching Taki's attention.

"Of course. I can hardly let Soul Edge be captured by someone else, can I?" Taki countered sharply. She looked up at the sky, which was still light. "Wish it was dark though, daylight is so much more…limiting."

"I'll take the ground, you take the roofs." Setsuka said with a grin. "We should get more done that way." She pulled her pink kimono around her, leaving her shoulders bare and twirled her umbrella around with a seductive smile. "This should keep people from seeing me, don't you think?"

"Yes. Yes of course." Taki answered quickly. She turned away, determined not to stare at her best friends figure.

As Taki climbed out of the window and towards the roof, she sighed to herself. The trouble with having a crush on your best friend, Taki thought, is that it can make things damn awkward.

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"Are you girls here to see the Lairs?" An old woman asked as Will went to ring the doorbell. "Well, they're not in."

"Do you know where they are?" Taranee asked quietly. The old woman nodded.

"They're at the hospital. Something's happened to the dad. Always knew that one would come a cropper one day. It's dangerous job, I used to tell him. Ask for a desk job, you have a wife and kids to think of, I used to say-"

The girls didn't hear any more as they got out of earshot.

"Stupid b#$$!" Cornelia hissed. "How DARE she go on like that!"

"Do you think they'll let us in?" Taranee asked, cutting Cornelia off deliberately. Cornelia glared.

"We have to try!" Hay Lin replied, almost indignantly. "She's our friend! And fellow Guardian! She NEEDS us!"

"I was just-"

"We're going." Will cut in. "Hay Lin's right, we're needed."

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Taki slipped into the vents at the hospital and slowly started crawling towards the room where the victim of Soul Edge was supposed to be held. Reaching the room in question, she felt her ninjato blade Mekki-Maru growl. No doubt, this man had been infected with the evil of the cursed blade. Clutching her second ninjato blade, Rekki-Maru, she prepared to strike.

Taki smashed her way through the grill and delivered a fast spinning kick to the curly-haired brunette sitting by the bedside. As the girl went flying backwards, Taki pulled out Rekki-Maru and raised the blade to stab down. As she did, a sudden movement to her right caught her eye and she spun away, narrowly avoiding the short, blunt end of an all-to-familiar weapon.

"Talim! What are you doing here!" Taki hissed angrily, pointing her blade at the petite girl.

"I'm here to save his life." She countered, staring up at Taki with fierce determination, an air of battle swirling around her.

"He is already lost." Taki hissed back, gesturing to the man in the bed. "I am here to stop him from sinking into something worse. Now step aside."

"He's a good man." Talim countered. He hasn't succumbed to the sword yet. I can still purify him."

Taki lunged and Talim deflected the blade with a swift downward swing.

"I told you, I WILL save him!" Talim hissed angrily. Taki simply glared back.

"Make sure that you do!" Taki shot back as she jumped up and climbed back into the air vents. Talim turned and faced the man with a sigh and looked at the name on the end of the bed.

"Tom Lair," she began, "I call upon the power of the winds to purge you of this evil."

The air in the ward began to bellow and swirl and Tom was visibly lifted from his bed in an angelic pose. Black lightening sparkled over his body, jumping between him and Talim in small arcs. As his body lowered back onto the bed, Talim heard a faint voice come from behind her.

"Talim?"

Talim recognised the girl at once. How could she not? Irma was one of the first people Talim had met at the Sheffield Institute. And Irma Lair was not an easy person to forget.

"You're dreaming Irma. Just dreaming." Talim whispered to her as she slowly slipped away. With any luck, Irma would just dismiss it as that.

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Siegfried looked around at the building around him. Ludmoore did seem like a good place to find information about Soul Edge and Nightmare in Heatherfield, the old library seemed to exude arcane knowledge.

But…it seemed too convenient. In Siegfried's experience, knowledge about the Soul Edge was rare in America and to have it turn up in the very same town was unlikely in his opinion. Drawing out his sword, he looked around once more.

"Maybe I'm just being paranoid." He murmured to himself as he re-sheathed his giant sword. Continuing into the building, he suddenly stepped forward and stepped onto a pressure switch.

There was a sudden sound of metal hitting the ground and Siegfried spun around to see a huge metal cog as large as himself bounced at him. As he leapt aside, the cog smashed his leg and he hit the ground groaning. High above, Zasalamel smiled.

"This should slow things to a more reasonable pace." He said with a dark smile, his golden eye glinting. Pulling out a mobile, he called an ambulance.

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Ivy looked over the report of the mysterious ship that had sailed in with a dead crew. This was definitely his work, of that she was sure. Looking at her map of Heatherfield, she ran a few calculations through her head.

"You should be right about…here!" she murmured, pointing her finger at the map. "Well father, it's time for a little family reunion."

Picking up her sword, Ivy walked out of her office and sat down on her bike. Kicking the starter switch, Ivy grinned as the bike growled beneath her and she sped off into the night.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Don't own and never will.

AN: There's a poll on my profile as to which fic I should focus on finishing next. Feel free to vote for one of the choices.

Ivy was driving dangerously fast as she rushed towards her destination. The wind blowing in her hair, she gave a shiver as the slipstream ran over her exposed legs. A white-almost transparent swimsuit was hardly ideal clothing for Heatherfield in Autumn, but Ivy prefers being prepared for a fight. And it shows off her legs nicely too, in her opinion.

There was a sudden crack of a pistol and her bike exploded. With an evil grin on his face, Cervantes stepped into the light, his old-fashioned flintlock pistol still smoking and one of his two swords in his hand.

"You should have been less fond of you machine daughter dearest," he said with a smirk. A long chain suddenly grabbed his gun and was suddenly pulled against his throat.

"That bike cost me a lot of money dear father," Ivy said angrily as she landed behind him. "I'll take out the value in your hide."

As her stranglehold tightened, Cervantes abruptly reversed his sword, and stabbed backwards, straight at her. Although he missed, it forced Ivy to lose her choke on him and spinning round he pulled out his other sword, sending Ivy's chain flying aside.

"Foolish spawn of mine, you will give me your soul!" he yelled angrily. Leaping forward, he swung both swords at her in a charge. Pulling her chain hard, it assembled itself into her sword and she swiftly parried the attack. Jumping backwards and landing on his feet, Cervantes glared at his wayward daughter. Ivy glared back. With an explosion of speed, the two of them leapt forward, Cervantes twin blades and Ivy's chain sword flashing in the dark.

W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C..

Setsuka twirled her umbrella as she examined the wreckage from Nightmare's rampage.

"Hmmm," she murmured to herself as she picked over the shards of glass and broken jewellery. "Soul Edge, or at least a part of it was definitely here."

"Hey, what are you doing here?" demanded a girls voice, one she knew very well.

"Xianghua, what are you doing here?" she demanded angrily as she grabbed the hilt of her blade buried inside her umbrella.

"The same reason you're here," Kilik said as he stepped into view twirling his staff. He gave her a long look. "You really shouldn't be here. Go back, this isn't your fight."

"Mitsurugi wants it. That makes it my fight," Setsuka growled and without warning she simultaneously unsheathed her sword and threw her umbrella at Kilik. Caught by surprise, he instinctively moved to parry the falling umbrella and Setsuka took advantage and slashed his arm. As she ran past him, she grabbed her umbrella and vanished into the night.

"That was impressive Kilik," Xianghua said with a laugh. "I'm sure we're safe from umbrellas with you around."

Kilik said nothing, his face red with embarrassment. Next time, he thought to himself, he would not allow himself to be caught off guard.

"What did I miss?" Maxi asked as he stepped out from behind a back alley swinging his nunchaku about in a casual manner. "Nightmare definitely didn't come through the back way."

Kilik here has been protecting us from the dangers of falling umbrellas," Xianghua said with a smirk. "He's very good at it."

Kilik simply twisted on his heel and turned away, his face still vividly red while Maxi looked at them with confusion.

"Hey Kilik, wait!" Xianghua called and he paused for a moment. Dashing up to him, she grabbed his faced and kissed him on the lips.

"Gods, get a room you guys!" Maxi exclaimed. They ignored him.

"Don't worry Kilik, I'm with you no matter what," she whispered to him.

W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C..

Talim crawled into bed when she reached her apartment. Within minutes, she was asleep. It was exhausting purifying people. The sooner she found and destroyed Soul Edge, the better.

W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C..

The tall lizard who Tony Vandom had encountered earlier lifted his head out of the dumpster he was digging around in and sniffed the air hopefully. Swallowing a bit of chicken, he grabbed his axe and shield and started walking towards the source of the new scent.

He was so close, he could practically taste it. Soul Edge was near!

Leaping out of the dumpster, he broke into a run, his eyes excited.

W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C..

Taki was leaping across the rooftops towards Ludmoore manor when she collided a flash of yellow caught her attention. She scanned the rooftops, seeking whoever or whatever she had seen, before shrugging her shoulders and continuing her journey.

A few minutes later, a garishly clad figure in gold and red emerged and leapt after her. Until one of Taki's feet shot out and slammed into him mid-jump and slammed him onto his back.

"How dare you follow me Yoshimitsu?" she hissed angrily as she put the edge of her knife against his throat. She put her face so close that they were almost touching and looked him in the eye.

Pulling her knife away, she punched him on the jaw and knocked him out cold for good measure. Then, with barely a backwards glance, she continued her journey.

W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C..

"Yun-Seong, what do you think you're doing?" Seong Mi-Na asked as he stopped to rest/

What does it LOOK like I'm doing?" he snapped back. "I'm finding the weapon that can reunite our divided nation and make it safe forever."

"You know what Soul Edge is! It is a pyrrhic victory to reunite Korea if it is united under the terrible tyranny of Soul Edge!" Seong Mi-Na practically shouted. "We can't do that to our people!"

"It would be different with me! I can avoid being corrupted by its power!" he protested. "I'm the toughest warrior in our school, I can control its power."

"You know full well that is impossible," Seong Mi-Na pointed out. "You know the history of the word. Nobody has ever been able to wield it without being corrupted. It's what Soul Edge does, it dominates and controls and possesses. It will take and take and take from you and demand and demand and demand."

"But I'm different! I can control it, make it obey my will!" Yun-Seong protested further. "How will we know if we never try?"

"Would you have me kill you cousin?" Seong Mi-Na countered. "Or would you kill me? Feed my soul to its darkness? The risks aren't worth it!"

"We are a broken nation, divided in two! Korea should not be divided so! United we could achieve extraordinary things!" he shouted excitedly. "We wouldn't have to rely on America, we could stand tall amongst nations and be proud! Surely that's worth the risk?"

"Korea has been divided since nineteen fifty-three. A few years longer will not change anything," Seong Mi-Na pointed out softly. "Please Yun, you don't need to do this. Help me destroy it instead."

"Destroy Soul Edge? Are you nuts, that sword is the ultimate weapon! It could take North Korea, keep China at bay. It could be the salvation of our people!" Yun-Seong protested and Seong Mi-Na rolled her eyes.

"At what cost? You don't believe that it's worth losing your soul, your very being over this," Seong Mi-Na paused and looked him in the eye. "It will kill and kill and kill until it is sated. You would kill the very people you seek to protect and drive a hole through the world of man."

"You're just jealous that I have the courage to try and you don't!" he shouted and ran off into the night.

"Sweet Buddha, he never listens, does he?" she murmured and with a grin, set off after him.

W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C..

Tom Lair's eyes fluttered open to see Irma looking at him expectantly.

"Irma? Where am I?" he asked as he felt the fog of whatever it was he was in, fade away.

"DAD!" Irma exclaimed as she happily grabbed him into a hug. "Dad, you're okay, you're okay, you're okay!"

"Of course I'm okay. Your old dad's tougher than that," he said with a smile, pretending not to be disturbed by the tears he saw on his daughters usually happy face.

The door opened and he saw four girls he knew very well, not least because it seemed that she was joined at the hip to these girls. Grabbing the blonde by the hands, Irma began wildly spinning the two of them around in a spinning motion.

"He's awake, he's awake, he's awake!" she practically shrieked in a manner more akin to that of her friend Hay Lin than her usual joker self.

"Perhaps we ought to call a nurse? To be sure that he's okay?" Taranee suggested and Irma hugged her as well.

"Yes, yes, of course!" she exclaimed and she pressed the call buzzer.

"Oh I'm sure he's okay," Hay Lin said with a smile. "I'm REALLY glad he's up and about."

"You should make sure of that," Cornelia said firmly. "We don't want him to get hurt because we missed something."

"What's happening?" a nurse asked as she charged in.

"He's awake, he's awake, he's awake!" Irma said excitedly. Within minutes, the doctors were busy examining him and the girls were quickly kicked out.

"What are you guys doing here anyway?" Irma asked curiously.

"Well I overheard Principal Knickerbocker telling you about what happened to your dad and well here we are," Hay Lin admitted.

"Thanks Hay-Hay. Thanks guys," she said as she hugged them. Then she frowned slightly.

"What is it?" Will asked and Irma looked at Hay Lin strangely.

"Hang on, isn't Principal Knickerbockers office on the-"

"-other side of the building? Yes it is. I used my powers okay, I was worried!" Hay Lin finished.

"Thanks Hay-Hay. Hey, isn't that the new computer science teacher?" Irma said and they all turned and looked.

"Hi Professor Raphael!" Hay Lin called out excitedly and Raphael gave them a wave and continued on his way.

W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C..

Ivy and Cervantes were abruptly forced to stop fighting as a giant lizard leapt out at them with a growl.

"Lizardman!" Cervantes hissed. He pointed his sword towards his daughter. "We will finish this another day daughter!"

And with that he ran. Ivy had little choice but to leave as well, although it hurt her pride doing so, she was not in a position to fight Lizardman if she could possibly avoid it.

W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C.. W.I.T.C..

Sitting n a darkened warehouse, Nightmare slid the shard of Soul Edge back into the blade and gave a sigh of happiness. It was almost his, he could taste it!


End file.
